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Aus Open 2020 – Men’s Draw Preview Charles Friesen 18 Jan 2020 Will someone other than the Big Three of Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic rise up and claim this Australian Open?   The Big Three have won the last 12 slams and 51 of the last 59.   That’s 15 years of dominance.   They have been interrupted on the slam podium only by Andy Murray, Stan Wawrinka, Juan Martin Del Potro, and Marin Cilic, all of whom are in there 30’s now.   Can someone born in the 1990’s or later win a slam?   The signals of last year are positive.   Thiem, Tsitsipas, Zverev, and Medvedev have multiple wins over the Big Three and are entrenched in the top ten.   Berrettini, Shapovalov, and Rublev are making strong headway; and there are teenagers on the horizon like Auger-Aliassime and Jannik Sinner.   With the draws released, how did the chips fall?   Who is likely to win some matches, go deep, or contend for the title? First Quarter Rafael Nadal ...

Aus Open 2020 – Women’s Draw Preview Charles Friesen 18 Jan 2020 Is Serena Williams still the favourite?   Last year Osaka, Barty, Halep, and Andreescu stole the show at the slams.   Combining all four of their odds, they would have to be favoured over Serena in the coming year.   But at this Australian Open, the bookies are still putting up numbers that show Serena is the top pick.   Unfortunately Andreescu is out with injury.   Will the rest of the field be able to stop Serena’s quest for slam #24? First Quarter Ash Barty is the top seed and has created a nice points cushion at the top of the rankings.   She’s far enough ahead that she can’t lose the #1 spot at this slam.   She just won the tournament in Adelaide and looks in good form.   But she could have a challenging third round if she faces Elena Rybakina (seeded #29), who this year has already made the final in Shenzhen and taken the title in Hobart. If she makes it...